[Scotttheking]

Had to call apple again today. Was using my PB (550 G4) when I got a black scrolling line and a flicker in the screen. It happened a few times.

Now, this is an almost 2 year old powerbook, but yeesh. This has got to be something like the 10th repair. Stinking thing can't go 5 months without having to go in the shop, and it's lucky to last that.
It's also my 2nd PB, with the first being a 500 that was replaced after it kept melting.
Is there any hope? I can't really ask for a replacement, because while it's had many problems, it hasn't had the same problem more then twice.
Am I just expecting too much out of a laptop?
Will this backup ever finish? Why is this backup going over 100base ethernet at under .5MB/sec? (the last 2 really don't need an answer)

--Scott

[belldandy]

Persistent. Keep bugging Apple Care til they break (give u the al-book 1Ghz combo as compensation) or you break. (ur lust over 1.25Ghz al-book overcomes your sense) ^_^"

1) your backup will be finished by the time your read my message.
2) Please make sure you are using a hub and please don't backup through mounting smb....because it will be slow. Use command line ftp or scp. =D

[Macola]

At least you have AppleCare...see this thread:
http://forums.macnn.com/showthread.p...hreadid=193819

[Scotttheking]

Originally posted by Macola:
At least you have AppleCare...see this thread:
http://forums.macnn.com/showthread.p...hreadid=193819

Sounds like fun.
I'm probably going with IBM for my next laptop. 3 year standard warranty, extendable to 5 years. And generally higher quality products. If something is wrong, they'll fix it, not make excuses.

[iomatic]

Don't let the door hit you on the way out!

Kidding aside, Scott-- you did get AppleCare, and you're not paying a cent, right?

What a pain! I generally have had only 2 out of 7 systems (still two too many) go poorly, and they were both Apple laptops (iBook motherboard and PowerBook white spots). Yet, they were returned quite quickly, and work seemingly fine...?

I've seen every-- I mean every-- PC laptop, from Gateways, Dells, Sonys, hp/Compaqs, Toshibas, yes, even IBMs, (friends, family, coworkers) have serious malfunctions...now THAT's far more discouraging! Is that wierd or what?

My experience (with AppleCare) has been good, perhaps it's (hopefully) a small percentage of bad experiences? All I care is getting my ROI far before something breaks down.



--

heh,
added ANOTHER PC laptop brand!

[Ron Goodman]

And what operating system will you run on this IBM laptop??

[Davidarm]

IBM makes the highest quality laptops on the planet, but they're also the most expensive...and you have to run XP. Is it worth it, Scott?

Everyone should use the tool that best enables them to complete their work.

[Macola]

Originally posted by Davidarm:
IBM makes the highest quality laptops on the planet, but they're also the most expensive...and you have to run XP. Is it worth it, Scott?

Everyone should use the tool that best enables them to complete their work.

At the risk of starting yet another XP vs OS X thread, I have to admit that I was almost pleasantly suprised by XP when I installed it on a PC that I built last year. However, inspite of mixed experiences with my various PowerBooks, if I had to buy another laptop right now, it would probably be a PowerBook.

[new newton]

My last experience with IBM laptops was with 4 Thinkpad i1200s. They were rather unpleasant little machines, with ME installed. I can understand them being buggy and unreliable because of that, but what I can't understand was the restore CDs IBM shipped with them. Talk about a convoluted restore process! Over the years I've rebuilt each and every one, and have yet to get any of them back to their factory condition--which isn't necessarily a bad thing. Basically what that means is that I have to manually search out the graphics drivers on the Internet, as IBM didn't include them. Brilliant.

Hardware wise... the plastics weren't very durable. Even with very limited use there are cracks in the screen bezel on 3 of the 4.

[Scotttheking]

Originally posted by iomatic:
Don't let the door hit you on the way out!

Kidding aside, Scott-- you did get AppleCare, and you're not paying a cent, right?

What a pain! I generally have had only 2 out of 7 systems (still two too many) go poorly, and they were both Apple laptops (iBook motherboard and PowerBook white spots). Yet, they were returned quite quickly, and work seemingly fine...?

I've seen every-- I mean every-- PC laptop, from Gateways, Dells, Sonys, hp/Compaqs, Toshibas, yes, even IBMs, (friends, family, coworkers) have serious malfunctions...now THAT's far more discouraging! Is that wierd or what?

I do have applecare, but that's not the point.
This is already my second laptop (applecare replaced the first), and it goes in for repairs often. I'm told 5-7 days I won't have my laptop. That's 5-7 days that I can't do what I need wherever I am. It means I won't have my laptop for class, for work, for play.
I'm not paying money, but I am paying time.

Originally posted by Davidarm:
IBM makes the highest quality laptops on the planet, but they're also the most expensive...and you have to run XP. Is it worth it, Scott?

Everyone should use the tool that best enables them to complete their work.

Expensive I can deal with. My first Ti cost over $3500, and I've spent money on addons since. I'm willing to pay for quality and reliability.
You don't have to run XP. The T41, their current flagship laptop, will support Win98SE and up. I'd be running either win2k, linux, or both. Sure I might prefer OSX, but it does me no good when I just don't have the laptop.
Part of what I'd pay IBM for is 3 years of on site service.

Originally posted by new newton:
My last experience with IBM laptops was with 4 Thinkpad i1200s. They were rather unpleasant little machines, with ME installed. I can understand them being buggy and unreliable because of that, but what I can't understand was the restore CDs IBM shipped with them. Talk about a convoluted restore process! Over the years I've rebuilt each and every one, and have yet to get any of them back to their factory condition--which isn't necessarily a bad thing. Basically what that means is that I have to manually search out the graphics drivers on the Internet, as IBM didn't include them. Brilliant.

Hardware wise... the plastics weren't very durable. Even with very limited use there are cracks in the screen bezel on 3 of the 4.

ME is one unpleasant OS.
Sounds like a fun IBM restore disk, I'll have to check on it. It's not a huge deal and I'd keep the stuff backed up, but it's an annoyance. Thanks for the heads up.
From what I've heard, the high end IBM laptops are far above their low end ones.


I think it's sad that my laptop just can't run well. Do I expect quality? Of course. I paid for it. Next time I call Apple, I'm not asking for a repair, I'm asking for a replacement. And if they offer me an AIbook, I'll ask that my ram be replaced, as well as my airport card, and my spare battery. At the rate this laptop lasts, that'll probably be in a few months

--Scott

[Mr. Bob]

Scotttheking, a program I would recommend to you is Norton Ghost. It makes an image of your entire computer "programs, files, registry" and you can put this on a cd, dvd, or even an partition on your computer. This helped me greatly when the os on my last computer just screwed the pooch, and after about 2 hours, I was back up and running like nothing happened. If your computer fails to boot, all you need is a boot disk, go to dos, and you are good to go.

By the way, quick question. Does OSX have anything like System Restore with Windows Me or XP. I haven�t used it yet, but I hear it works like a charm.

Well then, IBM computers have my vote for great machines, Dell "although the new ones looks really weird" and IBM computers are the two laptops that are Mr. Bob approved. Also, my experiences show that IBM's are built like tanks.

Also IBM warranty is much better then Apple care. Even if the Apple care was good, If I need to send my computer in to Apple to get it fixed after I open the box, then I am screwed for about a month. I live in Japan, so I need to ship it back and have Apple ship it to me. If it craps out during my school semester -- I go to school online by correspondence -- then I fail my classes. My Dell is currently doing a great job, so when a new iteration of PowerBooks come that are not crippled by a myriad of manufacture issues, then I will upgrade.


Hopefully however, you can just get a new PowerBook that works right.

[CadetStimpy]

Originally posted by Davidarm:
IBM makes the highest quality laptops on the planet, but they're also the most expensive

Don't get your hopes up too high, dude. I work for a Fortune 500 company and all we buy are IBM Thinkpads. One in every 5 winds up going back for warranty repair. And average life expectancy is about 2 1/2 years before we wind up pitching them and replacing them for one problem or another. We see about the same rate of failure on the Compaqs and HPs as well.

It doesn't matter what brand you buy. You're gonna find the same thing if you happen to get a flaky unit.

When we buy these machines, we accept that they're gonna fail. Hardware always does - sooner or later. Lesson of life - buy the Applecare. Worth every penny. Then just enjoy it till it breaks and get a new one.

[goMac]

Do what I did. Call up Apple, tell them you're tired of sending your Ti in for repair every two months, that this is unacceptable, and demand a new laptop. Thats how I got my AlBook (which is starting to show white spots : sigh : )

[Thinine]

Your machine may qualify for Apple's trade in program. It'll get you $700 towards a new machine. Or you could just demand a new machine.

[Lateralus]

As much as I love Apple, I have to admit that situations such as yours Scott certainly show that Apple is far from perfect.

I wouldn't be too hesitant about demanding a new machine (I would also point them to this thread, and the fact that you are a moderator on one of the largest and most visited Macintosh sites.. It gives you power). And if for whatever reason Apple refuses, as said above, do a trade-in. Of course, you would set the machine back to a more stock configuration first.

I know not what upgrades you have done to the laptop, or what gadgets you have bought for it, but I'd imagine that after trading in the PowerBook and selling a few of the upgrades/gadgets you would be within striking distance of a nice 12" GHz PowerBook. Not the most 'awesome' PowerBook, but it certainly has its advantages. One of them being the fact that the design seems to have very few problems and seems to be all around rugged and dependable.

Either way, while agreeing with you that IBMs ThinkPads are god-like, try to go with a PowerBook again if you can. You know as well as I that experiences such as this are not everyday, and chances are that if you go with a nice 12" PowerBook, you will have a very good experience.

Whatever happens, good luck to you and keep us up to date. I'd like to see how this ends up.

[coolmacdude]

Originally posted by Scotttheking:
I'm probably going with IBM for my next laptop.

That's it. Your moderator status is revoked!

[Big Mac]

Frankly, I've been shocked by the recent posts coming from Scott. Are we at all certain that he hasn't been replaced with a Microsoft cyborg?

[Scotttheking]

The box is here, I'll be shipping the laptop out Monday. There are 3 reasons I didn't ask for a replacement. First, it'd be very hard to get stuff like my ram, airport card, and batteries replaced. Second, the Aibooks are bigger, have less battery life, and have display problems. Third, this laptop has an infrared port that I occasionally use. New ones don't.

Originally posted by Big Mac:
Frankly, I've been shocked by the recent posts coming from Scott. Are we at all certain that he hasn't been replaced with a Microsoft cyborg?

[Quinn]

I am waiting on a call from Apple to confirm when I will be getting my replacement PowerBook.

My TiBook is 2 years, 9 months old and has been repaired a total of 7 times. In a four week period in Nov/Dec it was with Apple 3 times as they kept not fixing things and/or breaking new things. It came back the 3rd time and was pretty much a new machine. Its had a new HD (its second), DVD drive (its second), Logic board, display (its second), entire new case. This is all in 3 weeks. Turned out the new display has about 15 dead pixels and other weird marks so I demanded a replacement. Took a bit of talking but they finally gave in.

What PowerBook am I likely to get? New 15" AiBook? If so, has anyone convinced them to let them pay to upgrade to a better spec? The reason I as is... If I get the 1Ghz model, I will have to buy new RAM and a AE card as my TiBok RAM and Airport card will not work. I may as well pay Apple for a new 1.25Ghz model as I'll get more RAM, AE card, SD and a faster processor.

I assume it will be an AiBook as anything else would be old... Am I wrong?

I'll be glad when its all over. The houres spent on the phone and constant hassle of having to get home for the courier is a real PITA. Also, Apples tech support line is not free here so my phonebill was insane last time.

[goMac]

Originally posted by Quinn:
I am waiting on a call from Apple to confirm when I will be getting my replacement PowerBook.

My TiBook is 2 years, 9 months old and has been repaired a total of 7 times. In a four week period in Nov/Dec it was with Apple 3 times as they kept not fixing things and/or breaking new things. It came back the 3rd time and was pretty much a new machine. Its had a new HD (its second), DVD drive (its second), Logic board, display (its second), entire new case. This is all in 3 weeks. Turned out the new display has about 15 dead pixels and other weird marks so I demanded a replacement. Took a bit of talking but they finally gave in.

What PowerBook am I likely to get? New 15" AiBook? If so, has anyone convinced them to let them pay to upgrade to a better spec? The reason I as is... If I get the 1Ghz model, I will have to buy new RAM and a AE card as my TiBok RAM and Airport card will not work. I may as well pay Apple for a new 1.25Ghz model as I'll get more RAM, AE card, SD and a faster processor.

I assume it will be an AiBook as anything else would be old... Am I wrong?

I'll be glad when its all over. The houres spent on the phone and constant hassle of having to get home for the courier is a real PITA. Also, Apples tech support line is not free here so my phonebill was insane last time.

I got a 1.25 albook for my 1 ghz tibook.

[Scotttheking]

When my Tibook was replaced they gave me the option to pay to upgrade to the high end model. My Tibook will hopefully arrive by Friday. It'll be really nice if it never has to go to Texas again. Of course, if it comes back with problems, I'm asking for a new Tibook. And for replacement of every accessory that requires this Tibook, which consists of: 2 batteries, 1 ram stick, 1 airport card, and 1 palm IIIc

[Quinn]

Well, Apple just called. They are giving me a 1Ghz AiBook for my 500Mhz TiBook. I offered to pay for an upgrade to the 1.25Ghz model but they said they can't do that.

I'll have to get new RAM and and AE card but hopefully I can sell my old ones on eBay to help pay for them.

Will just be glad to have machine that works.. hopefully..

[scoot]

Yes, they can do that. You'll have to get customer relations to do it though. Keep arguing if necessary.

[Quinn]

Originally posted by scoot:
Yes, they can do that. You'll have to get customer relations to do it though. Keep arguing if necessary.

This is Apple Europe. The woman agreed that it made no sense but its not something they do in Europe. Am trying to see if my Apple dealer will take it and sell me a 1.25Ghz model.. A friend is buying a Dual G5 in the next few weeks so I'll try and use that to convince them.

My only concern is that Apple will send me a refurb unit which means the dealer will not accept it. People who have got a replacment, did Apple send you a new mac in original box etc?

[qnxde]

Originally posted by Quinn:
This is Apple Europe. The woman agreed that it made no sense but its not something they do in Europe. Am trying to see if my Apple dealer will take it and sell me a 1.25Ghz model.. A friend is buying a Dual G5 in the next few weeks so I'll try and use that to convince them.

My only concern is that Apple will send me a refurb unit which means the dealer will not accept it. People who have got a replacment, did Apple send you a new mac in original box etc?

They should give you a 1.25. The 500mhz was the high end from that model. If it was a tibook 400, then they would be correct in giving you a 1ghz albook.

[dwood]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by qnxde:
They should give you a 1.25. The 500mhz was the high end from that model. If it was a tibook 400, then they would be correct in giving you a 1ghz albook. [/QUOTE

wrong, they get replaced with the machine that most closely matches the specs of the previous machine. The rule of thumb is that the replacement machine has to at least be capable of everything the previous model.

[Quinn]

Well, they are throwing in a free Airport Extreme card as well. And I'm getting a new machine shipped from Taiwan so I'm happy.

One question that I forgot to ask and I don't have the time to go on hold again is:

This new mac will be eligible for AppleCare, yes?

[dwood]

Originally posted by Quinn:
Well, they are throwing in a free Airport Extreme card as well. And I'm getting a new machine shipped from Taiwan so I'm happy.

One question that I forgot to ask and I don't have the time to go on hold again is:

This new mac will be eligible for AppleCare, yes?

No, the replacement unit is covered under your original computers warranty, or 90 days whatever is longer.

[scoot]

Sorry, didn't realize you were dealing with Apple Europe.

Yes, you can get AppleCare on the new one. You can also try to get a pro-rated refund on any AppleCare plan you have on the old one.

Well, in the US anyway...